Broken Road (6 page)

Dr. Anderson looked him straight in the eye. “We don’t know for certain, but sadly, there is likelihood that he might. It might be a good idea for you both to prepare yourselves for this possible outcome. We’re so sorry. We truly are. It goes without saying that we will do whatever we possibly can to save your son.”

Janet wiped her tear-filled eyes with a tissue and asked, “Is he in much pain?”

Dr. Anderson stretched slightly forward across the conference table and placed his hand over Janet’s. “No. I truly believe he is not in any pain. Presently, Jarrod is in a coma. The trauma to the head, based on the results of the CT scan, appears to be significant. Dr. Christian Silverstein is reviewing his file and scan results and will determine what the next step should be. I should tell you that Dr. Silverstein is one of the most prominent neurosurgeons in this field. Your son Jarrod is in great hands. He’ll be able to explain in much better detail what needs to be done next.”

Dr. Arcao followed with, “Mr. and Mrs. Wentworth, we’re not going to lie to you. For a brief moment, twenty-five seconds to be exact, we lost Jarrod. He flat lined and had no pulse. We were able to bring him back, but we do not know what long-term effect those twenty-five seconds may have had on him, should he wake up from the coma.”

“
When
he wakes up,” said Janet. She wasn’t crying or panicking anymore. She simply sat there fingering a small gold cross around her neck, all the while looking calm, stoic, and resolute. She was determined that her son was going to wake up and be fine, and because of this, Jim felt better. When Janet was determined for something to happen, it happened.

After speaking with the doctors, Jim and Janet spent the next few hours at Alec’s bedside. He was sleeping peacefully, thanks to the pain medication he was being given. Every once and awhile, he would wearily open his eyes, let out a soft groan, and then fall right back to sleep again. The nurse, Kayla, had come by once or twice to let them know if there had been any changes in Jarrod’s condition. Unfortunately, there hadn’t been.

At 6:22 a.m., they were finally allowed to see Jarrod. Although Kayla had forewarned them of what to expect, they still had not been prepared to see him in this state. When is any parent prepared to see their child lying in a bed, helplessly hooked up to numerous machines and IVs? They both gasped as they approached him.

Janet leaned over, as she had done with Alec, and kissed his cheek tenderly. His head was wrapped in a turban of white gauze, and there were numerous cuts and abrasions evident across his cheeks, chin, and neck, with scatters of dried blood encased in the wounds. His face and lips were swollen beyond recognition. This unconscious man-child lying helplessly in the hospital bed barely resembled their beautiful son.

“Baby, it’s Mom,” she whispered in his ear. “You’re going to be fine. We’ll get through this one step at a time.” Janet suddenly realized that those were practically the exact same words she had said to him earlier that day, prior to him making the call to Mr. Wyatt. She gave Jarrod a tentative smile, because she knew she had been right then, and she was going to be right again. “I love you,” she said, and she kissed him once again.

Soon after they met with Dr. Silverstein. It turned out that he not only was considered a champion surgeon in his field, but was also the chief of neurosurgery at St. Thomas’s Medical Center. He elucidated in further detail the results of the tests and examinations. He also informed them that immediate surgery was required; otherwise Jarrod’s outlook would significantly worsen.

Chapter Six

 J
arrod was prepped and taken into surgery that afternoon. The Wentworths were informed that the surgery would last approximately four hours, and they spent that time alternating between Alec’s room and the hospital chapel. At one point Jim went home to place the dreaded call to Mr. Wyatt, but was back at Janet’s side within a short hour.

The surgery went amazingly well, with no complications arising. Dr. Silverstein was able to relieve the pressure building in Jarrod’s brain by removing the amassed blood. Now, only time would tell. He would be monitored around the clock by a team of doctors and nurses. All Janet and Jim could do now was hope and pray for Jarrod’s safe and quick recovery.

Services for Dante Malone were held that Tuesday morning at Holy Trinity Church. It seemed as if every resident of Cliffside Park was in attendance to pay their respects. The church was overflowing with mourners, and people stood outside on the sidewalk, quietly listening to the priest via a loudspeaker that had been turned on. Family, friends, and even strangers stood under a sea of umbrellas as they tried to protect themselves from the bleak rain, appropriate weather for such a dismal, oppressive occasion. Many embraced one another while trying to reconcile themselves to the fact that something so tragic could have happened to such a decent, well-liked, and admired young man.

Upon entering the church, Alec noticed Morgan was in attendance, but had opted to sit in the last pew with a few of her friends.
She probably chose to sit there due to its close and convenient proximity to the exit door
, he thought. For someone whose boyfriend was lying in a coma after a horrific accident, and who was attending her boyfriend’s best friend’s funeral, she didn’t appear too heartbroken as she whispered and giggled into her friend’s ear. Alec turned away from her revolting display of dispassion and joined his parents, who were sitting morosely in the fourth pew. The Wentworths had already expressed their sympathies to Dante’s family the night before when they had visited them at their house after leaving the hospital. The meeting had been sad and discomfited. Janice and Mike were inconsolable and rightfully so. Between tears they apologized to the Wentworths profusely, for they not only felt sadness, but also regret as well for the physical state of all the boys; especially Jarrod, whose life was dangling by a string. They also felt an abyssal sense of remorse for the tragic death of the other driver.

Wiping away her tears, Janice lifted her head and looked at Alec. “I just don’t understand how he could have run a red light,” she said. “He was usually so careful driving. Alec, you were there. Please tell us what happened?”

Alec, who had just been released from the hospital the day before, looked at his parents for support. He didn’t want to tell them their only child had died because he was busy looking for a CD in the glove compartment. At the same time, he understood that as Dante’s parents, they had the right to know every step that had led up to their son’s death. Janet softly touched his shoulder. “They need to know. Tell them.”

Alec glanced down at the floor and said in a soft voice, “He was reaching into the glove compartment to look for a CD.”

Janice and Mike both looked shocked. Mike closed his eyes, bit his lower lip while shaking his head in denial, and excused himself from the room.

An unending stream of tears poured from Janice’s eyes. As she wrapped her arms around her middle, she rocked herself gently back and forth.

Janet turned her eyes toward Jim, and they stared back at each other, feeling powerless. Her heart broke for her friend, but all the while she couldn’t help but be thankful her two children were still alive. Broken and battered, but mercifully still alive. Janet quickly walked over to the sofa where Janice sat and wrapped her arms around her. Janice leaned into her, seeking comfort and solace from the pain that was destroying her.

“How could he have done something so irresponsible? A CD? My son died because he wanted to listen to a damn CD.” She sobbed uncontrollably out of pain and anger. “Why didn’t he just ask someone to—”

“He did,” said Alec. “He asked Jarrod to look and he did twice but couldn’t find it.”

“Oh…” She took a few deep breaths to calm herself down, wiped her nose with a handkerchief that she clutched tightly in her fist, stood up, and slowly walked toward the fireplace, where she stood momentarily staring at a family portrait that hung above the mantel. Dante had only been three years old when the photo had been taken. He had been so uncooperative that day. Although the photographer was able to make him smile for that one snapshot by repeatedly hitting himself on the head with a plastic cane, if one were to look closely, one would notice the gleam of unshed tears in his eyes.

“Which CD?” she asked, never taking her eyes off of the portrait.

Alec looked up at her and said, “Excuse me?” He couldn’t understand how that mattered.

“Which CD did he want?” she repeated softly.

“Umm…” he hesitated. “AC/DC.”

A slight smile broke through her pain and she said, “‘Thunderstruck’?”

He nodded and speaking softly said, “Yes.” Now he understood why it mattered. Dante’s mother knew as well as everyone else how he had loved that song.

Mike had reentered the room unnoticed and stood silently in a corner with his head down and his arms folded across his chest. Upon hearing what was said, he lifted his head and slowly walked over to Janice and pulled her into his arms. They held each other silently for a few moments and then Mike turned toward the Wentworths and said, “Again, we’re so very sorry. We feel horrible that so many lives were impacted due to Dante’s recklessness. I hope you can accept our apology and forgive Dante.”

Jim walked over to stand behind Janet and placed both his hands squarely on her shoulders. “You have nothing to apologize for. It was an accident. These things happen. Think of how many times we’ve all done the same exact thing. You just never think that something will come of it. Dante never meant for any of this to happen.” He drew in a deep breath and continued. “We have no choice but to accept things and move forward. The boys, in time, will heal. The two of you need to heal as well, and the only way for that to happen is for you, not us, to forgive Dante and let his spirit be at peace.”

Janet and Jim walked toward Dante’s devastated parents, and they embraced one another in conjoined pain as Alec looked on. As he turned to readjust himself in the chair, he inadvertently let out a soft moan of discomfort. His medication was wearing off and he desperately needed to lie down.

Janet, seeing that Alec needed rest, made their excuses and said their good-byes. Though it was not mentioned, they all knew they would see each other again in the morning at the funeral service.

As Janet sat in the church wiping away her tears, she bombarded heaven with silent prayers for Dante, his parents, and all the boys involved in the accident, as well as Clyde Lambert, the young father of three boys who had been driving the pickup truck that had crashed into Dante’s car. She had read in the newspaper that morning that his funeral was being held today as well. Brendon and Joey were still hospitalized due to their injuries, but the outlook was good for them both. Jarrod came through the surgery and now all anyone could do was wait and see.

The service lasted almost two hours and had all the major components that would generate a tearjerker movie. Various students, teachers, and relatives spoke briefly in turn of Dante’s high-spirited and exuberant love of life and all that it offered, his undying devotion to family and friends, maddening obsession with reality TV, and ultimately his prodigious fondness for a really good party. The final eulogy, given by his father, was heart-wrenching as he spoke of the love and pride he and his wife felt and would eternally cling to in their hearts for their beloved son. He broke down twice while speaking, but never quit. As difficult as it was for him to stand in front of hundreds of witnesses as he bid his final farewell to his only child, he persevered as would be expected from this man who held a remarkable sense of true honor, strength, and dignity. His worthy tribute was followed by the melodious voice of Luciena Alderoni, who had secretly harbored a crush on Dante for the last two years. She sang the stirring, devotional words of the “Ave Maria” while his coffin was slowly and gently carried out to the waiting hearse that would transport his body to its final resting place, Mount Hope Cemetery.